Shopping party locator systems and methods

ABSTRACT

Provided are a shopping party locator system and method. The system and method includes creating a shopping party for a group of customers entering a store, wherein creating the shopping party includes operating a shopping party application on a store computing system to take and store a photo of the group of customers and create a label for each member of the group of customers. The label of a member of the group of customers separated from the shopping party may be scanned by a scanning device. The label of any member of the shopping party may be scanned if a member is discovered missing. The system automatically notifies a designated caretaker and notifies all associates and customers in the store that the member is separated in order to find the separated person. Once found, the separated member&#39;s label may be scanned the identity verified.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION[S]

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Applicationentitled “SHOPPING PARTY LOCATOR SYSTEMS AND METHODS,” Ser. No.62/328,802, filed Apr. 28, 2016, the disclosures of which are herebyincorporated entirely herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates generally to a shopping party or group, and morespecifically, to systems and methods for identifying a shopping partyand locating a lost member of the shopping party.

BACKGROUND

People often shop at stores, such as grocery stores, department storesand the like in groups or shopping parties. A shopping party may includea group of individuals that are associated together at a store forshopping, such as, but not limited to a family, a caregiver anddependents, and the like. While shopping, members of a shopping partycan become separated. Usually the person lost does not carry a phone,which makes finding them difficult. Therefore, someone has to leave thearea in which the lost person may be searching for them in order torequest help from a store employee.

BRIEF SUMMARY

In one aspect, provided is a method for identifying a shopping party,comprising: creating a shopping party for a group of customers enteringa store, wherein creating the shopping party includes operating ashopping party application on a store computing system to take and storea photo of the group of customers and create a label for each member ofthe group of customers, each label comprising a same code that is linkedto the photo; providing, at the store, a label to each member of thegroup of customers; scanning, at the store with a store scanning device,the label of a member of the group of customers separated from theshopping party; and automatically notifying, from the store computingsystem, a designated caretaker for the group of customers that theseparated member of the group of customers has been scanned.

In another aspect, provided is a method for identifying a shoppingparty, comprising: creating a shopping party for a group of customersentering a store, wherein creating the shopping party includes operatinga shopping party application on a store computing system to take andstore a photo of the group of customers and create a label for eachmember of the group of customers, each label comprising a same code thatis linked to the photo; providing, at the store, a label to each memberof the group of customers; scanning, at the store, the label of adesignated caretaker for the group of customers in response to thecaretaker determining a member of the group of customers is separatedfrom the shopping party; automatically displaying the photo, byoperating the shopping party application on the store computing system,in response to scanning the label of the designated caretaker;identifying on the displayed photo, the separated member of the group ofcustomers of the shopping party; and sending a notification by the storecomputing system to employees and customers within the store, whereinthe notification includes a photo of the member separated from the groupof customers.

In another aspect, provided is a system for locating a member separatedfrom a shopping party, the system comprising: a plurality of scanningdevices for scanning bar codes; and a store computer system of a storecomputing system located at a store, which store computer system iscoupled to the plurality of scanning devices and programmed to: receivefrom a scanning device of the plurality of scanning devices a signalcomprising data associated with a scanned bar code; automaticallyidentify a shopping party in response to processing the data from thescanning device; automatically display a photo of the shopping party oncomputer of the store computing system in response to identifying theshopping party, wherein a member separated from the shopping party isidentifiable; using data received and stored, automatically generate andtransmit to all computers of the store computing system that displays aphoto of the separated member of the shopping party; receive from ascanning device of the plurality of scanning devices a signal comprisingdata associated with a scanned bar code of a label of the separatedmember from the shopping party; and automatically notify the storecomputing system that the separated member of the shopping party hasbeen scanned.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and further advantages of this invention may be betterunderstood by referring to the following description in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings, in which like numerals indicate likestructural elements and features in various figures. The drawings arenot necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed uponillustrating the principles of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of shopping party locator system at a retailstore at which embodiments of the present inventive concepts areemployed.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an arrival/sign up system of the system ofFIG. 1, in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for locating a separatedmember of a shopping party by a store associate, in accordance with someembodiments.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for locating a separatedmember of a shopping party by a parent, in accordance with someembodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Many store customers shop in groups, such as families or a caregiverwith a dependent. These groups are referred to as shopping parties. Attimes during shopping at a retail store, member of the shopping partymay become separated from the group and in particular from the caretakerof the shopping party. These separated members often do not have a formof mobile communication and it is difficult to find the separatedmember.

The present inventive concepts utilize a system for obtaining a photo ofa shopping party upon entry to a store and providing a label having acode, such as a bar code that groups members of the shopping partytogether. In the event a member of the shopping party is separated fromthe shopping party, the bar codes may be scanned with a store scanningdevice or mobile device operating a mobile application. The scanning ofthe code on the label begins a location of the process for locating theseparated member for unifying with the shopping party.

The present inventive concepts will give customers peace of mind to knowthat the store is concerned with their children's or dependent's safety,using all aspects of technology and social media to ensure the safereturn of the missing party. The store will have the ability to notifyany relevant authority or agency as well as possible witnesses by usingour global centralized systems. By allowing customers to notify thestore, using any device within the store, store associate or via smartapplication, as soon a party goes missing, the success rate ofrecovering the missing party increases significantly. Should thecustomer choose to use the Shopping Party Locator, should a party gomissing and not be found in the store, the most current photo isavailable and ready to be distributed as necessary.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a shopping party locator system 10 inaccordance with embodiments.

The shopping party locator system 10 can include a store computer system12, a centralized computer system 14 and a store managers workstation16. As a shopping party or group of customers enters a store, thecustomers are directed to a booth 20. The store computer system 12operates to capture a photo of the group of customers and assigns a codeand prints the code on a label using printer 22. A caregiver, such as aparent, guardian or the like also provides certain information, such as,but not limited to, a phone number and a name and the same would beassociated with the code on the label. The code may be a bar code, or itmay be other types of codes, such as a QR code and the like. The labelsmay be applied to the customers in the shopping party. It will beunderstood that the caregiver may determine which of the shopping partymay be in the photo, such as children, elderly and the like. The imagingsoftware utilized by a store computing system, including a storecomputer system, includes a functionality of recognizing and determiningthe number of faces in the photo and number each for identificationpurposes should it be needed.

In some embodiments, the number of faces in the photo would determinethe number of labels to be printed as each person in the shopping partywould need a label. In other embodiments, customers may override thenumber of labels to be printed, such as instances when a parent(s) isnot in the photo, a small infant is being held, or the like. However,labels on infants would help in other situations, such as, but notlimited to, leaving children in shopping carts and not realizing ituntil the parent(s)/care giver has made it home. In these instances, assoon as the child is found, the label could be scanned and parents/caregiver would be notified.

With further reference to the block diagram of an arrival/sign up system40 of FIG. 2, customers may enter a designated area or booth 20. Thecustomer picture may be taken as indicated in box 42 and the image sentto the store computer system 12 and the centralized computer system, 14which includes a store computer system of the system 10. The image isprocessed and individuals identified and further shopping partyinformation is entered into the centralized computer coupled to thestore computer system 12, wherein input at the store computer system 12transmits data to the centralized computer system 14. A label with acode associated with the photo of the shopping party and correspondinginformation is printed at printer 22. The labels, which may be stickers,may be attached to each member of the shopping party as indicated at box44.

The shopping party may then begin shopping. If during shopping someonewere to be separated from the shopping party, help could be requested inby scanning of a label. One way is to scan any given label within theshopping party on any store scanning device, such as, but not limited toprice verifier scanner, wherein the price verifier scanner is coupledwith the store computer system 12 to send data associated with thescanned code to the store computer system and to the centralizedcomputer system 14, wherein the store computer system includes anapplication or is otherwise programmed to receive communication orsignal including the scanned code data and coupled with the storecomputer system/data base in order initiate a process of locating aseparated member of the shopping party. Another way is scanning anygiven label within the shopping party on any mobile device operating a“Shopping Party Locator” application. In these embodiments, the“Shopping Party Locator” may be programmed to recognize the store numberautomatically, using current back office equipment. Yet another way ofscanning a label is to notify an associate or the Service Desk, whereinan employee of the store may then scan any given label within theshopping party. The register would call the POS system or current backoffice equipment using a coded application.

Once a member is determined missing at decision diamond 24 and a labelis scanned. To identify the separated person of the shopping party,after the label code has been scanned, the photo associated with thelabel would automatically be sent from the store computer system to bedisplayed on the screen of the designated devices. Each person in thephoto may be identified with a number assigned by the system 10. Thecustomer, CSM or the like, may either touch the screen over theseparated person's face, or enter the separated person's associatedsystem number using a keypad, or otherwise indicate the photo of theseparated member of the shopping party. In at least this way, the system10 provides verification of the scanned label to ensure that anaccidental scan of the label with the code has not occurred.

As soon as the label code is scanned, but prior to actual facialidentification, an automatic announcement through the paging systemwould notify all store associates and customers of a Code Adam. This isbeneficial as the store can go into Code Adam mode while awaitingverification and/or the photo. The parents/care giver may be sodistraught that they are not thinking clearly and may have difficultygetting through the rest of the identification process. This wouldensure the search begins as soon as possible.

Once the separated person has been identified or verified through thesystem 10, the system will automatically send an alert, as designated inbox 28, including the photo, noting the separated person by number, toall designated devices, including but not limited to, all registers andthin clients, and mobile devices operating the “Shopping Party Locator”application and associated with the same store number as the scannedlabel. All associates within the store would have access to the photo ontheir store devices. The face of the separated person would be availableto anyone using the “Shopping Party Locator” application on their mobiledevices within the given store. This would allow customers to help withthe search also. In some embodiments, an alert much like a weather alertwould be sent to the smartphone. If the customer wanted to participatein looking for the missing person, they could follow a link, which wouldbring up the photo.

If the separated member of the shopping party is found at decisiondiamond 27, an alert is sent to the designated devices and a care giveris paged at block 26. Verification of the separated person andassociation with a particular shopping party is performed. When theseparated person is found and verified, a CSM or manager will cancel theCode Adam.

If a shopper finds the missing person, they would have the ability topush the “found” button and it would automatically notify the AP systemand back office to give the location. It would send an alert to the CSM,assistant manager and store manager to prevent the customer fromwandering around the store with the separated person. However, it willnot cancel the alert until the missing person is verified and reunitedwith his or her shopping party.

Should the authorities be needed, the photo would be the most recenttaken showing clothing, hair style, hair color, height, etc. It could beshared through social media, news agencies, police, etc.

If a separated member is not found at decision diamond 25, an alert issent to designated devices at block 24. At predetermined times; thesystem 10 will follow a designated escalation path automatically untilthe separated person is located. This escalation patch includes: a) oncea person has been reported missing and the label scanned, the systemwill automatically send the Code Adam; b) after a predetermined time(based on current store procedure) the system will automatically sendthe missing person alert to local media, local police, other storeswithin a given radius, social media, state police as depicted indecision diamond 30; c) the system will automatically send the photo tothe store manager's workstation 16 to be printed on the store manager'snetwork printer 17 so it can be printed out and placed on the “missing”wall in the store; and d) alerts will continue at predetermined timesuntil a member of management cancels the alert. This can be done fromany store or police station should the missing person be found there.

When the missing person is found, a CSM or manager will cancel the CodeAdam. Further, photos are purged, in-store, on a rolling 24 hour period.Further still, photos of children that are not immediately found will bekept and uploaded to the Home Office and can be played on any in-store“missing child TV,” wherein instead of keeping paper photos lined up ona wall near Customer Service or Store Pickup, a TV may be displayed nearthe registers that continuously scrolls through photos of missingchildren.

Referring again to the drawings, FIG. 3 depicts a method 60 of using thesystem when a separated member is found by a store associate, accordingto embodiments. The method 60 may begin at Step 62 when a separatedmember is found by a store associate. The store associate may then scanthe code on the label at Step 64 with a designated device, including,but not limited to a register 66, a mobile device 68, a price checker70, and the like. The instore system equipment 72 receives the data andforward to the centralized computer system 74, wherein the centralizedcomputer system 74 is programmed to automatically send an alert throughtthe store back office equipment 72 to designated devices at Step 76. Themethod may further include paging the parent/care giver at Step 78 tonotify the parent/care giver that the separated person is found. Themethod 60 may then include reuniting the separate member with his or hershopping party at step 80.

FIG. 4 depicts a method 90 of using the shopping party locater systemwhen a parent/care giver reports a missing or separated member from theparty, according to embodiments. The method 90 may be initiated by aparent/care giver discovering that a member of the shopping party ismissing (Step 92). The parent/care giver may notify an associate (Step94) and a bar code scanned with a designated device, including, but notlimited to a register 96, a mobile device 98, a price checker 100 andthe like. The data is sent to the store computer system 102 and thecentralized computer system 104. The centralized computer system withthe store computer system, operate to automatically issue a Code Adam atStep 110, send an alert to designated devices, including store devicesand in store customers operating a “Shopping Party Locator” applicationon a mobile device and is associated with the particular store at Step112; and send alert to the in store TV's for displaying a photo of theseparated member of the shopping party. If after a predetermined timehas passed and the separated member has not been located, the method 90may include sending an alert to third parties, including local police(Step 116), state police (Step 118), social media (Step 120), localstores in a predetermined radius (Step 122), local media (Step 124), andthe like. The method 90 may include automatically sending from thesystem missing person photo to all stores (Step 126), and print outphoto at a printer of the manager for display on the “missing wall” ofthe store (Step 128). When the child is found, the alert is cancelled(Step 130) and the system is purged (Step 132).

According to other embodiments, a method for identifying a shoppingparty includes creating a shopping party for a group of customersentering a store, wherein creating the shopping party includes operatinga shopping party application on a store computing system to take andstore a photo of the group of customers and create a label for eachmember of the group of customers, each label comprising a same code thatis linked to the photo; providing, at the store, a label to each memberof the group of customers; scanning, at the store with a store scanningdevice, the label of a member of the group of customers separated fromthe shopping party; and automatically notifying, from the storecomputing system, a designated caretaker for the group of customers thatthe separated member of the group of customers has been scanned.

The method may include scanning the label further comprises scanning, atthe store, the label with a mobile device operating a mobile locatorapplication. The code may be a bar code. In the method, notifying thedesignated caretaker comprises sending an electronic notification to amobile device operating a mobile locator application. Further, notifyingthe designated caretaker comprises providing an audible notificationthrough a sound system of the store. The method may further includeissuing a Code Adam alert throughout the store in response to scanningthe label. The method includes sending, by the store computing system, anotification to employees and customers within the store, wherein thenotification includes a photo of the member separated from the group ofcustomers.

If the child is not found, the method may also include sending, by thestore computing system, the photo of the separated member of the groupto third parties comprising social media, news agencies and police inresponse to not locating the separated member of the group of customers.The method also includes purging photos stored on the store computingsystem on a rolling 24 hour period.

In another embodiment, a method for identifying a shopping partyincludes: creating a shopping party for a group of customers entering astore, wherein creating the shopping party includes operating a shoppingparty application on a store computing system to take and store a photoof the group of customers and create a label for each member of thegroup of customers, each label comprising a same code that is linked tothe photo; providing, at the store, a label to each member of the groupof customers; scanning, at the store, the label of a designatedcaretaker for the group of customers in response to the caretakerdetermining a member of the group of customers is separated from theshopping party; automatically displaying the photo, by operating theshopping party application on the store computing system, in response toscanning the label of the designated caretaker; identifying on thedisplayed photo, the separated member of the group of customers of theshopping party; and sending a notification by the store computing systemto employees and customers within the store, wherein the notificationincludes a photo of the member separated from the group of customers.

In the method, scanning the label further comprises scanning the labelwith any scanning device within the store or scanning, at the store, thelabel with a mobile device operating a mobile locator application. Thecode may be a bar code.

The method may further comprise issuing a Code Adam alert throughout thestore in response to scanning the label. The method may also includesending, by the store computing system, the photo of the separatedmember of the group to third parties comprising social media, newsagencies and police in response to not locating the separated member ofthe group of customers. The method includes purging photos stored on thestore computing system on a rolling 24 hour period.

Another embodiment includes a system for locating a member separatedfrom a shopping party. The system comprises a plurality of scanningdevices for scanning bar codes; and a store computing system located ata store. The store computer system is coupled to the plurality ofscanning devices and programmed to: receive from a scanning device ofthe plurality of scanning devices a signal comprising data associatedwith a scanned bar code; automatically identify a shopping party inresponse to processing the data from the scanning device; automaticallydisplay a photo of the shopping party on computer of the store computingsystem in response to identifying the shopping party, wherein a memberseparated from the shopping party is identifiable; using data receivedand stored, automatically generate and transmit to all computers of thestore computing system that displays a photo of the separated member ofthe shopping party; receive from a scanning device of the plurality ofscanning devices a signal comprising data associated with a scanned barcode of a label of the separated member from the shopping party; andautomatically notify the store computing system that the separatedmember of the shopping party has been scanned.

The plurality of scanning devices comprises at least one mobile deviceoperating a mobile locator application. Additionally, the plurality ofscanning devices comprises at least one store scanning device. The storecomputing system may comprise a mobile device operating a mobile locatorapplication.

The store computer system is further programmed to automatically issue aCode Adam alert throughout the store; automatically send the photo ofthe separated member of the group to third parties comprising socialmedia, news agencies and police in response to not locating theseparated member of the group of customers; and purge photos stored onthe store computing system on a rolling 24 hour period.

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of the presentinvention may be embodied as a system, method, or computer programproduct. Accordingly, aspects of the present invention may take the formof an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment(including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or anembodiment combining software and hardware aspects that may allgenerally be referred to herein as a “circuit,” “module” or “system.”Furthermore, aspects of the present invention may take the form of acomputer program product embodied in one or more computer readablemedium(s) having computer readable program code embodied thereon.

Any combination of one or more computer readable medium(s) may beutilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signalmedium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readablestorage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic,magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system,apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. Morespecific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer readablestorage medium would include the following: an electrical connectionhaving one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, arandom access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber,a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storagedevice, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. In the context of this document, a computer readable storagemedium may be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a programfor use by or in connection with an instruction execution system,apparatus, or device.

A computer readable signal medium may include a propagated data signalwith computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, inbaseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may takeany of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to,electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. Acomputer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium thatis not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate,propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

Program code embodied on a computer readable medium may be transmittedusing any appropriate medium, including but not limited to wireless,wire-line, optical fiber cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination ofthe foregoing.

Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of thepresent invention may be written in any combination of one or moreprogramming languages, including an object oriented programming languagesuch as Java, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional proceduralprogramming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similarprogramming languages. The program code may execute entirely on theuser's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alonesoftware package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remotecomputer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latterscenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computerthrough any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or awide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an externalcomputer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet ServiceProvider).

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems) and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer program instructions. These computer program instructions maybe provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, specialpurpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus toproduce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via theprocessor of the computer or other programmable data processingapparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified inthe flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computerreadable medium that can direct a computer, other programmable dataprocessing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readablemedium produce an article of manufacture including instructions whichimplement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer,other programmable data processing apparatus, cloud-based infrastructurearchitecture, or other devices to cause a series of operational steps tobe performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus or otherdevices to produce a computer implemented process such that theinstructions which execute on the computer or other programmableapparatus provide processes for implementing the functions/actsspecified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof code, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be notedthat, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in theblock may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, twoblocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantiallyconcurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverseorder, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be notedthat each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, andcombinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchartillustration, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-basedsystems that perform the specified functions or acts, or combinations ofspecial purpose hardware and computer instructions.

While the invention has been shown and described with reference tospecific preferred embodiments, it should be understood by those skilledin the art that various changes in form and detail may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as definedby the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for locating a member separated from ashopping party, the system comprising: a plurality of scanning devicesfor scanning bar codes; and a store computer system of a store computingsystem located at a store, which store computer system is coupled to theplurality of scanning devices and programmed to: i. receive from ascanning device of the plurality of scanning devices a signal comprisingdata associated with a scanned bar code; ii. automatically identify ashopping party in response to processing the data from the scanningdevice; iii. automatically display a photo of the shopping party oncomputer of the store computing system in response to identifying theshopping party, wherein a member separated from the shopping party isidentifiable; iv. using data received and stored, automatically generateand transmit to all computers of the store computing system thatdisplays a photo of the separated member of the shopping party; v.receive from a scanning device of the plurality of scanning devices asignal comprising data associated with a scanned bar code of a label ofthe separated member from the shopping party; and vi. automaticallynotify the store computing system that the separated member of theshopping party has been scanned.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein theplurality of scanning devices comprises at least one mobile deviceoperating a mobile locator application.
 3. The system of claim 1,wherein the plurality of scanning devices comprises at least one storescanning device.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the store computingsystem comprises a mobile device operating a mobile locator application.5. The system of claim 1, wherein the store computer system is furtherprogrammed to automatically issue a Code Adam alert throughout thestore.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the store computer system isfurther programmed to automatically send the photo of the separatedmember of the group to third parties comprising social media, newsagencies and police in response to not locating the separated member ofthe group of customers.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the storecomputer system is further programmed to purge photos stored on thestore computing system on a rolling 24 hour period.
 8. A method foridentifying a shopping party, comprising: creating a shopping party fora group of customers entering a store, wherein creating the shoppingparty includes operating a shopping party application on a storecomputing system to take and store a photo of the group of customers andcreate a label for each member of the group of customers, each labelcomprising a same code that is linked to the photo; providing, at thestore, the label to each member of the group of customers; scanning, atthe store with a store scanning device, the label of a member of thegroup of customers separated from the shopping party; and automaticallynotifying, from the store computing system, a designated caretaker forthe group of customers that the separated member of the group ofcustomers has been scanned.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein scanningthe label further comprises scanning, at the store, the label with amobile device operating a mobile locator application.
 10. The method ofclaim 8, wherein the code is a bar code.
 11. The method of claim 8,wherein notifying the designated caretaker comprises sending anelectronic notification to a mobile device operating a mobile locatorapplication.
 12. The method of claim 8, further comprising issuing aCode Adam alert throughout the store in response to scanning the label.13. The method of claim 8, further comprising sending, by the storecomputing system, a notification to employees and customers within thestore, wherein the notification includes a photo of the member separatedfrom the group of customers.
 14. The method of claim 8, furthercomprising sending, by the store computing system, the photo of theseparated member of the group to third parties comprising social media,news agencies and police in response to not locating the separatedmember of the group of customers.
 15. A method for identifying ashopping party, comprising: creating a shopping party for a group ofcustomers entering a store, wherein creating the shopping party includesoperating a shopping party application on a store computing system totake and store a photo of the group of customers and create a label foreach member of the group of customers, each label comprising a same codethat is linked to the photo; providing, at the store, a label to eachmember of the group of customers; scanning, at the store, the label of adesignated caretaker for the group of customers in response to thecaretaker determining a member of the group of customers is separatedfrom the shopping party; automatically displaying the photo, byoperating the shopping party application on the store computing system,in response to scanning the label of the designated caretaker;identifying on the displayed photo, the separated member of the group ofcustomers of the shopping party; and sending a notification by the storecomputing system to employees and customers within the store, whereinthe notification includes a photo of the member separated from the groupof customers.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein scanning the labelfurther comprises scanning the label with any scanning device within thestore.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein scanning the label furthercomprises scanning, at the store, the label with a mobile deviceoperating a mobile locator application.
 18. The method of claim 15,wherein the code is a bar code.
 19. The method of claim 15, furthercomprising issuing a Code Adam alert throughout the store in response toscanning the label.
 20. The method of claim 15, further comprisingsending, by the store computing system, the photo of the separatedmember of the group to third parties comprising social media, newsagencies and police in response to not locating the separated member ofthe group of customers.